The Darkness 3: New Beginnings
by Warmaster40K1
Summary: After being trapped in hell with the one thing he hates for an unknown amount of time by the Angelus, Jackie Estacado does the one thing he never wanted to, he gives up the Darkness to keep his sanity, Now free, the Darkness seeks to get even with the Angelus, but first he needs a new host, what will happen though, when the Darkness meets its match?
1. Prologue

**Author's Note:** Hi Guys, This is my First Fic, so be honest with the Criticism, I don't own the Darkness (At Least, not the comic version MWAHAHAHA!) it is the property of Top Cow, and all this is just my take on things, meant only to be Fiction, in the future I might mention some comic based enemies and items but that's in the future, for now it's all me baby, I hope you enjoy.

(Sarcastically) And don't forget to leave a like and Subscribe, lol.

**Prologue**

You know how you grow up being told that everything is fine and dandy and that no-one wants to hurt you and that you're going to be president or some shit, well that's how things start, that's how they get you, you see, childhood's supposed to be all happy and your memories are supposed to be warm and fuzzy, and you're supposed to be scared of the dark...

Or at least that's what I was told, you're **Supposed** to be scared of the dark but I wasn't, I wasn't like every other kid my age, hiding under the covers, afraid of the monsters out there, I grew up being afraid of the sun, afraid of the blinding light, the scorching heat and the nauseating colour.

I used to think the moon was way better, at least it didn't give off much light, but still I loved the dark, I loved playing hide and seek with my mom and hiding in some dark cupboard, listening to my thoughts, at least I assumed they were my thoughts.

But I should probably stop gasbagging and get to the real reason you're here, but in order to understand why **you're** here, I need you to understand why **I'm** here.

I wasn't much of an active kid growing up, by the time I was 13 I was pretty fat, I didn't have many friends, no future prospects and no drive to do anything except sit around playing video games and eating food, I was born in England but my mom decided to move us to Manhattan, I don't know my father, never did, don't want to, but I had a family, or at least a parent which is a lot more than some kids get, my mother worked in an orphanage, teaching English funnily enough to the kids there, I meanwhile went to some rat-hole of a place, can't remember the name, just as well if you ask me.

Like I said I didn't have many friends, only a few, kids like me, fat and lonely, we grouped together because we didn't have a choice, I skipped a lot of school as a result of the bullying, but when my mom found out she made me tell her what was wrong, and you can guess what happened next, more bullying, this time about my mom, well that was the wrong thing to do, looking back I understand that it probably wasn't best to smash the prick's head against the floor till he bled from his ears, but by god did I feel better after it.

Not bad, just content, as I sat in front of the Principles office with his blood on my hands and on my clothes, my mom almost fainted when she saw the state of me, I can't really blame her, although I didn't understand why she was fixated on my nose until we got home and I looked in the mirror, turns out that while I was impacting the floor with the kid's head he must have hit me with one of his flailing arms and broken my nose, weirdly I didn't even feel it, any of it, not the initial impact nor the blood spurting from my nostrils, not even any shock after the incident, it was as if I was spared the agonising pain by something, back then I wasn't sure what but now I know.

After that I got kicked out of school, and no other would take me seeing as it was near the end of the term, my only choice was to join my mom at the orphanage, I didn't mind it but it seemed weird because I went home at the end of the day, when the other kids didn't, in a way I felt sorry for them, a feeling I had never experienced before but after telling my mom that I thought I was ill she explained that I wasn't sick, I was a good person, I felt for those kids and wanted to help them, I still just thought I was sick, I would have preferred it if I were sick, as the years went by I made new friends, proper friends, from the kids at the orphanage.

One in particular stood out, a girl, same age as me, Lilly, although she later told me that it was short for Lilith, she thought the full name was strange but I told her I liked it, weirdly I did, Lilith, there was something about the name that felt strangely familiar to me but I didn't dare tell her that lest she get the wrong idea and think I was stalking her or worse, anyway, me and Lil hung out a lot, more than I ever hung out with the other kids there, we became close, and on every one of her birthdays I would invite her round to me and my mom's house and we would have a party for her, she became part of the family, a familiar face round my house, but all good things come to an end, and so it came to be that on Lilith's 16th Birthday she was adopted, and life after that stopped being anything other than, dull, boring and repetitive, without her in my life I fell back into the dark, I started staying out late not caring if I came home or not, II just didn't know what to do without her anymore, when I was 17 I had all but forgotten her, I had purposefully wiped her from my memory so that I might be spared the pain of ever thinking of her again, and life continued, I got taller and thickened out, but I was still fat unfortunately, and then one night on one of my night time walks my life changed.


	2. Chapter 1: My 18th Birthday

**Author's Note:** Can you believe that after writing for what seemed like ages, I finish chapter 1 only for my computer to crash, losing all my progress, infuriating, not only that but I then suffer from writers block as well, maddening, and this is only chapter 1, of like a bazillion chapters (I have a lot of space in my head for fiction) anyway never mind, if you're reading this then it means that I did something right and managed to not mess up for once, the standard disclaimer applies-I don't own the Darkness, it belongs to its rightful and respective owners, this is just fiction (not meant to be taken seriously) and I hope you enjoy it, Thanks.

**Chapter 1: My 18th Birthday**

I was walking home around eleven, thinking to myself as you do, I was so engrossed in my own thoughts that I didn't hear the footsteps behind me, too late I turn around only to get smashed in the face with something heavy, I feel my nose break once again, this time though I **Feel** it break, blood once again starts gushing from my nostrils as I hold back the tears of pain, as I'm dealing with that I get shoved against the wall of an alley, I must have stumbled into it in my pain, I clear my eyes only to find that the object which broke my nose pointed at my face, it's a gun, and not a toy one either, the guy holding the gun barks something at me in a language I can't understand, just as I'm working up the courage to try and grab the gun from his hands another guy peels out of the shadows, most likely the guy's accomplice, him I can understand as he orders me to give him my wallet, I tell them okay and grab my wallet from inside my coat pocket, I got to open it but the second guy grabs it from my hands and pockets it, I remember that there's a picture of Lilith inside my wallet, from just before she was adopted, I tell them they can have the money but just let me have the picture back, the guy with my wallet opens it and starts going through, before finally holding out the picture, I go to grab it, but he doesn't let go and the picture rips, then he and the other guy start laughing as I watch the pieces fall to the floor, then the gun goes off.

Only the thing is, I'm now standing where the guy with the gun was and he's lying on the ground with a smoking hole in his forehead and his blood pouring out onto the concrete, his buddy, now staring at me with eyes so wide you could fit your fist in them, starts to back away, before turning and running full pelt up the alley, I watch through eyes that aren't mine as my hand raises, the gun still in it, I watch in agonizing slow motion as I pull the trigger, I watch as the bullet, travelling with unerring accuracy explodes against the back of his head, I watch, dumbfounded as his legs go slack beneath him and his body crumples to the ground, I watch for the next five or so minutes as blood pools around both the guys heads, one face up, one face down, before I start to run, faster than I ever had before, I run past countless flashing lights before I finally make it to my apartment block, just before I head in though I realize I'm still carrying the gun, quickly I shove it in my pocket, thinking I can discard it later before heading up the three flights of stairs and down the corridor to my door, just as I'm about to put my key into the door I hear a loud moan coming from the other side.

Of course, I forgot, my mom had a date that night with some guy from the orphanage, _"Eww" _I think to myself, "_Gross"_ I decide that its probably better to get far, far away from this place so I turn around and go back down the three flights of stairs, going down is a lot better than coming up I think to myself as I descend, _**"you know, you're awfully calm for someone who just committed double murder"**_ a voice in my head says, I just stop and stare into the distance while rooting through myself, looking deep down within for

something, anything to make me feel bad, hell even remorseful, but there's nothing, I just reason with the voice that it was self-defense, no harm no foul, and weirdly I felt better after thinking that, I don't know if that makes me a bad person but at that time in my life I felt better than I had in a long time, then I check my watch and notice the time, 00:07am, must just be because I'm now officially a man, not that double murder isn't man-making it just looks bad on paper, a lot worse than "just turned 18", I decide to celebrate with a drink, I have no idea where to get a drink but I decide to go out and celebrate nonetheless, so opening the door I breathe in the somewhat fresh night air and step out as a man.

As I exit my apartment block I feel a sudden and intense throbbing in my nose, My nose!, of course it's still broken, I touch it ever so lightly and almost cry at the sudden, sharp pain that shoots across my face in every direction, _"Right"_ I think to myself _"I have to get cleaned up first, before __I can think about getting drunk"_ that however, is easier said than done, if I go to the emergency room I run the risk of cops, not to mention the gun still sitting pretty in my pocket, so my only option is to keep walking, "_if I'm lucky maybe some random hobo can fix it"_, glad to see that my sense of humor isn't dampened I start walking, after an hours or so of walking I find myself in a apart of the city I'm unfamiliar with, but undeterred I continue onwards, a few corners later and I came across one of those 24 hour diners, **"**_**they would probably have a toilet you can get cleaned up in"**_ I hear the voice say, "You know, you're right" I reply out loud without thinking, earning me a few stares from some passing pedestrians, "_I'm definitely crazy"_ I think to myself before shaking it off and heading inside.

Stepping in from the cool night air I head to the counter and call the waitress over, when she arrives I ask her if they have a toilet I can use, luckily there is and she points me towards it, as I'm turning I catch out of the corner of my eye that the look on her face changes, maybe it's because I'm covered in dried blood or maybe, just maybe she caught sight of the gun, wanting to get someplace safe in a hurry I half walk half run to the bathroom, inside I take my coat off and hang it on one of the hooks in a stall before walking to the sink and turning the tap on, splashing the cold water on my face I feel my nose throb again, looking down to see the blood running down the drain, I feel ten times better as I gently scrub the dried remains from the bottom portion of my face, when I'm positive that I look a lot better I grab some paper towels and dry my face, before bunching some up and gingerly pushing them up my nose to stop any further bleeding, glad that I look a lot less crazy and deranged I grab my coat and exit the bathroom, no one gives me a second glance as I head to a corner booth and sit down, going over what happened in my head I'm too pre-occupied to notice a different waitress coming over, it's only when she asks me if I would like anything that in shock I jump a little, startling her and causing her to drop her notepad.

apologizing I scoop the notepad up and hand it to her, catching sight of her name badge as I do, Lilly, it says, suddenly the voice returns _**"Hey, wasn't the girl we grew up with called Lilly?, you should ask her if it's short for anything" **_Without even registering my lips moving I hear myself ask her if Lilly is short for anything, there's a pause before she replies with "Yeah, it's short for Lilith, but nobody calls me that... it's a stupid name."

"Actually," I reply, "I like it", after that she stares at me for a few seconds before she whispers my name,

"Gabriel?"

"Lilith" I reply, meeting her gaze and holding it, all the while my mind's racing with questions, she sits down opposite me and we talk, about tons of things, about her, what happened after she left, what she did, where she went, who she met, and then me, although when I get to tonight I stop talking and just look at her, she notices and asks me what's wrong, I say that what happened tonight changed my life, she asks me to clarify, so I reply with the fact that I found my best and closest friend again, then she asks about the blood on my coat and I have to tell her about getting mugged, leaving the part about me killing the guys and still having the gun out, she looks shocked, then she wants to know why I'm not at home, I tell her about almost walking in on my mom with some guy, she just laughs, then she mentions my nose and I tell her that it's broken again, and that I don't want the cops involved so I won't be going to the emergency room, then I get hit with the worst news ever, she says that her boyfriend is a nurse and that he can fix it for me, I'm still going over why I feel so chewed up inside when she asks me if I have anywhere to stay for tonight, I don't and tell her that, then she says that I can crash on the couch in her and her boyfriend's apartment, I, after going over the options in my head accept and she says that she gets off work in a few minutes and we can go then.

Outside the diner after zipping up my coat I check my watch again, 01:29am, wow, never been out this late before, hope my mom's not worrying about me, then again I don't really want to go home, not now that I'm with Lilith, as if she heard my thoughts, Lilith comes out of the diner with her coat and belongings, I take her coat from her and help her put it on, then she starts walking, I'm soon beside her, but don't quite know how far away to stand so I bump into her, she laughs again and I apologize, feeling myself grow redder, she waves my apology away and then links her arm through mine, my heart starts beating a little faster and I hear the voice again "_**Really?, You kill two guys without a second thought, but THIS gets your blood pumping?", **_I ignore it and we talk some more on the way to her place, I'm really enjoying getting to know her again that I'm shocked by the time we get to her apartment and she points out her boyfriend's car, noting that he's not meant to be home till the morning, we walk up the stairs out front before I open the door for her and follow her in, making for the stairs I'm surprised when Lilith calls out to me, turning around I see that she's standing in front of two elevator doors that are sliding open, standing in the elevator as it ascends I breathe a sigh of relief and exclaim that I'm happy to not have to walk up all those stairs, that earns me a chuckle, I smile and for the first time that night feel normal.

Upon emerging from the lift we turn right and walk down the hallway until we stop outside a door, Lilith retrieves her keys from her pocket and unlocks the door, opening it and standing aside so I can go in first, I enter and come face to face with a guy who, asks me who the hell I am and why am I with his girlfriend, he must be real nice if he asks and doesn't just hit me, I reply that I'm an old friend of Lilith's and that she said I could crash here for the night, he looks like he might believe me but needs more clarification, just then Lilith shows up and introduces us to one another, his name's Tom and he is indeed a nurse, after we all get to talking for a while, with beers, which I'm happy about, we seem to get on with each other, although that might be because we're both a little drunk, it's well after 02:00am when Lilith and Tom retire to their bedroom and leave me alone in the lounge area, my head has barely hit the cushion before I'm off, the one thing going through my mind before I finally drift off is that my nose still isn't fixed.

**Author's Note:** Well, here it is, Chapter 1, Finally, just a heads up, if I'm writing too much Exposition, don't be afraid to tell me, it's just that writing this thing is kind of like making a sandwich, there's the bread, then the meat, then more bread, I promise that when we get to the meat that it's going to go on for ages and there's going to be a lot of it, that's the one thing I excel at, hope you enjoy it.


	3. Chapter 2: Hard Work Sucks

**Author's Note:** First off I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed my story thus far, your comments have been taken on board, it really motivates me to continue when you guys give me such support (Sniffle), Whoo, now that's over and done with we can get down to the juicy stuff, if you all can bear with me for a few more chapters of fluff then I swear by the Darkness that binds us all together, that I will repay you by giving you the Goriest, Bloodiest, Sexiest, Sweariest? chapters that you have ever seen, and will continue to do so until I am either consumed by madness or I lose interest, whichever comes first (Fingers crossed for the madness).

**Chapter 2: Hard Work Sucks**

Waking up with a hangover sucks, I mean really sucks, especially when you wake up on the couch in the apartment of the woman you love, and her boyfriend is the one to wake you up, wearing little more than a towel, and seeming really happy for a guy who got just as wasted as you last night, anyway, after being woken up by Tom he tells me over a cup of coffee that Lilith had to dash out to see someone about something she saw on the news that morning, it seems to me that he doesn't know what but am too out of it to question him, I do however manage to bring up my nose, which seems to sense that I'm talking about it and starts to throb again, yay, anyway, he tells me that he can fix it but it's going to hurt, I say that's fine, I can handle it, but then he places his thumbs on either side of my nose and then I almost black out with pain as I hear an audible SNAP and suddenly I can breathe through my nostrils again, albeit kind of wheezily, he explains that it should heal as good as new and asks me if it was ever broken before, I tell him about when I was a kid and he expresses shock at my tale, not believing that I could have done such a thing and even more shock at the fact that I didn't feel my nose break the first time, I don't know what to tell him at that moment in time so I just shrug and sip my coffee, there's an awkward pause before I glance at my watch, 09:14am.

"Hey, why aren't you at work?" I ask Tom, he looks at me and says that it's a Saturday, "Oh, right" I exclaim before remembering something I'd forgotten, today's my birthday, I almost drop the mug I'm holding as I scramble to get my coat and put it on, Tom jumps a little at my sudden burst of speed and asks me where I'm going, after I explain to him my predicament I grab a piece of paper that was lying around and jot down my address, handing the paper to Tom I ask if he can give that to Lilith when she gets back, rushing to the door as I do, before I yank open the door and, after politely closing it behind me, dash off down the hall, completely disregarding the elevator on my way, reaching the stairwell I bash through the door as I fall almost down the flights of stairs, when I reach the bottom I'm gasping for air, _**We really need to get in shape"**_ the voice chirps in as I'm rushing to the front doors, opening them I look around to get my bearings, noticing the street name I do a quick scan of the road and spot what I'm looking for, a taxi, walking to the cab I pull open the door and get in, before telling the cabbie my street name and sitting back, watching the world go by as the car stutters before rolling out.

I got back to my place a few minutes later and, after paying the driver, climb out the door and make my way to my apartment, putting my key in the door I'm startled when it flies open and my mother grabs me and hugs me before pushing me into the apartment and yelling at me, that goes on for a while, she's yelling at me about last night, about when I was a kid, about everything, it's like she's held all this back but now it's coming out, a huge ocean of yells, after explaining everything about last night, minus the whole mugging and killing part she expresses embarrassment and then joy at the fact that I ran into Lilith, then she tells me that because I'm now 18 that I can live here because she's going to go live with the guy from last night, my mouth, as you can imagine, drops so much that I can taste the carpet beneath my feet, now it's my turn to yell at her, we go round and round the houses but the truth is that she's happy with this guy, and while I could never be on the same page as some guy who was sleeping with my mom, I have to admit that a part of me is truly happy for her.

Lilith calls by a few hours later, after my mom's finished hugging her and talking with her she leaves so we can have some time to talk, I explain all the things that just happened but she seems distant, almost as if she's ignoring me, as I'm going over the fact that I now live on my own Lilith turns to me and plants her lips on mine, shocked, all I can do is go with it, pushing my lips against hers, before she breaks contact and asks me something I wish she hadn't.

"Did you do anything last night?."

"Like what?" I say, getting up and walking over to the window.

"Like kill two guys in an alley?." she replies, also getting up and going over to my coat, reaching inside the pocket she pulls out the gun, "Maybe with this?." she says, throwing it onto the coffee table, it lands with a resounding BANG, feeling more nervous than I did last night I quickly rush over and grab the gun before running into my room and hiding it on top of my wardrobe.

"I saw a report on the news this morning, about two guys shot dead in an alley, the only thing near them was a picture, torn in half", at this point I'm beginning to sweat, and figure there's no use hiding it anymore, so after explaining everything about last night, the mugging, the picture of her getting torn in half, me turning into some slick shit killer, nailing two guys with pinpoint accuracy, kinda feeling proud of that fact, she just looks at me and then does something I never expected her to, she gets up, comes over to me, sits next to me on the edge of my bed and whispers in my ear that she doesn't care, _**"I can see why you like her"**_ the voice chips in, before I take a deep breath, swallow and say "What?, you don't care that I shot two guys?, why the hell not?."

"Because you did it for me", she replies, looking me in the eyes as she does so, then she kisses me again, slower than before though, and I feel something stir deep inside me, putting my hands on her waist and the back of her head I lower her to the mattress before planting kisses on her neck and after unbuttoning her shirt, her chest, my hands now caressing the slopes of her breasts, but before my hands have a chance to travel any further south, I feel a sharp stabbing pain in my head and have to stop, sitting up I tell her that we can't do this, wondering all the while why not, she wants me to explain so I do, I tell her that she has a boyfriend, that I just committed a crime, that it's not how I imagined it to be, that I need to get in shape before I can do anything with her, that I have so much going on right now, more than I have ever had before, as I'm catching my breath after vomiting all that out, she agrees with me before buttoning up her shirt, slowly I might add, then I walk her to the door and, after assuring her that things will change, open I and let her out, then I proceed to shut the door and bang my head against it furiously, shouting "WHY?" though gritted teeth.

The next few months pass in a blur, my mom moves out, she sorted rent out with the landlord, I'm set for a year, I get lonely more often than I'd like and end up walking the streets, gun in pocket, hoping for something to happen night after night, I start exercising and cutting out most of my fatty foods, god do vegetables taste awful, every morning I weigh myself, feeling myself getting thinner and thinner, it helps to think of Lilith when I feel like I can't do it anymore, in fact I've never had more motivation for anything in my life before this point, after a few more months I feel confident enough to join a gym, lifting the weights and running on the treadmill, makes me feel even more alive than anything, I even manage to get a job as a doorman outside a fancy restaurant, the new year comes and goes, I throw a party at my place and invite my friends from work and Lilith and Tom as well, only at midnight Lilith kisses me instead of Tom, the look on his face is one of pure hatred, but I ignore it, thinking nothing will ever come of it, my job goes even better, one night, as I'm standing outside the joint this swanky looking car pulls up, the door opens and some rich guy with fancy looking hair gets out of the car, he walks over to the door and I'm just about to open it for him when it swings open from inside.

"Jackie, it's good to see you, come on in". a guy says, Vinnie I think his name is, I seen him around a few times, but never this Jackie guy, maybe he's the owner, I think to myself as I stare into the line of people waiting to get in.

"Hey Vinnie, How's the family, Jackie replies heading inside, "Which one?" Vinnie says, shutting the door behind him, but not before I hear something about the brunette at the front desk, checking my watch I notice that it's the end of my shift, I open the door and walk over to the aforementioned desk, after having a short chat with the brunette I ask for my pay as it's the end of the week and she says of course before disappearing out of my sight for a few seconds before popping back up and handing me a wad of cash in a brown envelope, I thank her and then make my way out, heading home that night I can't help but feel like I missed something, but what I can't tell.

**Author's Note:** Bet you're sick of seeing these am I right?, anyway, sorry if this seems a little shorter than chapter 1, I can't judge my spaces and so everything looks the same to me, but enough about my inadequacies, I'll say it now so as to get it out of the way, the uploading schedule for these chapters is gonna be a little erratic, I was going to do a weekly thing but I just want to write so much, and so often that I vomit these chapters forth whenever I can, some weeks there might be two chapters, some weeks there might only be one, so don't get discouraged if I haven't acknowledged your reviews or comments when you read the new chapters, I will get around to it, so it might be a few chapters later than you think but I will definitely get around to it, you won't get left behind or forgotten, Ohana.(Means Family in Hawaiian).


	4. Chapter 3: But The Prize

**Author's Note:** This is a Warning, DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE UNDER 18, this chapter contains sexual scenes of a gratuitous nature and I do not want to be responsible for anyone getting in trouble or anything like that, I told you it was coming, and pretty soon, it'll be time for the big reveal, hope you're ready for it, because I am not going to hold back from here on in, I'm committed even more now than I was at the beginning. **(Disclaimer, I don't own anything, cept my OC's, Due to the content from here on in I am going to change the rating to M so if you are looking for this story then search for M.)**

**Chapter 3: But The Prize**

It turns out I was missing a hell of a party, just after I had left, the restaurant got attacked by some thugs from some rival gang, or at least that's what the news said the following day, I was just thinking about whether I had a job left or not when I was snapped out of my thoughts by a sharp knock on my door, glancing at my watch I saw that it was around seven in the morning, wondering who the hell would be knocking on my door this early I walked over to it and looked through the peephole, it was Lilith, I hadn't seen her since the new years eve party and was glad to see her, although I wondered why she hadn't visited since then, I unlocked the door and opened it, and I got my answer, Lilith had a black eye, my mouth hung open a bit and she asked if she could come in, I moved aside so she could and then closed the door behind her, locking it as I did.

"What the hell happened to you?" I asked, as she took off her coat and sat down on my couch, "It was Tom, after that night when he saw us kissing, he and I argued when we got back home, and he said I wasn't to see you again." she said as I poured her some coffee.

"Why not, we're best friends, and Tom really doesn't seem the type to hit women." I said as I finished stirring the coffee and, walking over to her, handing it to her and sitting down next to her.

"Don't you believe me?, do you think that I would do this to myself?" she says, her voice raised and angry.

"Of course I believe you, come here" I say, putting my arms around her and hugging her as she starts to sob, her shoulders heaving as she cries onto my shoulder, without thinking I kiss the top of her head and whisper that it's going to be fine, then I lift her face and wipe the tears from her eyes with my finger, she smiles at me and then I tell her that I'm going out and to stay here, she asks me not to go round to her apartment, saying that Tom has some friends round and that's how she was able to get away, I tell her that I can't let it slide and that I have to at least say something, _**"Pussy, you should kill him" **_the voice says, ignoring it I go to my room and change my shirt, swapping the tear-stained one for a clean one from my wardrobe, before leaving Lilith in my apartment and heading off.

It takes a while for me to find Lilith's apartment, it's been so long since I was there, over a year if I remember correctly, but after finding the place I climb the stairs with ease this time, emerging onto the hallway I make my way to the door and knock on it a few times, waiting a while before I hear a response, it's not nice, in fact it's rather rude, so I let my presence known to him, that gets an even worse response, he even says that he's not opening the door because I don't have that bitch with me, that does it, stepping back a bit I get ready to unleash the badass within, then, with all my might I walk forward and raise my foot, putting all my weight into it and then, throwing it against the door, it buckles under my blow but doesn't move much, getting even more pissed I try again, this time though, the door doesn't buckle, it splits right down the middle as I stride through the broken pieces, turns out that Tom was behind the door the first time, that's why it didn't open, now it is though.

He's sprawled out on the floor, semi-conscious, so I grab him and haul him to his feet before ramming my knee into his stomach and smashing my right hand into his face, he falls backwards onto the floor again, as I reach around my belt and pull out the gun that I still have after all these years, holding it against his temple I make it very clear to him that if he hits Lilith again, I will kill him, after I've beat the shit out of him, he just mumbles okay, then I smash the butt of the gun into the side of his head before telling him to go to sleep, leaving the apartment, stepping over the shattered remains of the door and exiting the building onto the street, then I head back home, to Lilith.

It's late when I get back to my place, I decided to do some shopping, and so when I get in, I'm immediately jumped on by Lilith, Dropping the groceries to the floor I wrap my arms around her back, before pushing the door closed with my foot, I carry her into the lounge and, with great difficulty manage to sit down on the couch while Lilith straddles me, kissing me all the while, pushing the cushions off the couch I lie down, pulling her with me, her hands start unbuckling my belt while mine are busy keeping her hair out of my face, her kisses get more urgent, and as she finally undoes my belt before pulling my zipper down she breaks the kiss, as I'm catching my breath she busies herself with her own shirt as I stand up and kick off my shoes before undoing my shirt and shaking it off, throwing it on the floor as Lilith finishes with her shirt, she follows my lead and throws her shirt on top of mine, then she beckons me in front of her, I edge over and she grabs the waistband of my pants before yanking them down and planting kisses on my abs, then she pulls my boxers down and takes my cock in her hands, running her tongue over me I let out a low moan and almost erupt then and there, but, digging down inside I manage to hold off, then she opens her mouth and wraps her lips around my cock, taking all of me into her mouth, her lips locked in an O shape, then, she starts moving her mouth along my shaft, slathering my penis with her saliva, before taking me out of her mouth and grasping me in her hands, then she stands up and pulls me into the bedroom.

In the bedroom she lies on the bed and I pull her trousers off before slowly gripping her panties and pulling them down her legs, exposing her core and, after throwing the panties onto the floor, I start to lick her pussy, burying my face into her swollen snatch, Lilith moaned in pleasure and arched her back, pushing herself into my face, my tongue busy coaxing her juice out of her, my hands moved up her body and found her breasts, still trapped in her bra, feeling something stir deep inside me again I lifted my head away from her and, with both hands, ripped her bra in two, freeing her breasts, she cried out in shock as I resumed my work at her core, teasing her with my tongue, making swirling motions inside her I start tweaking her nipples between finger and thumb until they stand erect, fully engorged with blood, not the only thing I notice as I feel myself press against the mattress, wanting to be inside her so badly I quicken my pace, bringing her to the brink, before rubbing her clit with my finger, causing her to scream out and cum, her honey flowing out of her and onto my tongue, as I finish lapping her juices up I move into position and ask her if she's ready, not meaning to sound so cocky, but that's the way it comes out, she, in response just opens her legs wide and stretches herself for me, positioning myself in front of her I rub my head against her and coat myself in her juice before slowly pushing myself into her, she opens her mouth in shock and I can't help but smirk a little as I hold her hips and thrust into her, my cock, now coated in both our fluids, slides smoothly inside her and I groan in pleasure at her tightness, her walls holding me, making it almost impossible to pull out, but I know that if I don't I might lose control, moving my hips against hers I match her rhythm and we move together, faster and faster, I start to grunt as I increase my speed, and she suddenly thrusts her hips upwards when I'm deep inside her, taking me to the hilt as I, not expecting anything like that, fail to keep my control, I yell loud and low as I cum deep inside her, shooting my load into her as she at the same time, screams and her walls clench around me, milking my cock for all it's worth as she orgasms, I can't move for a few seconds, my cock still buried deep in her, before I finally manage to pull my still dripping member out of her and collapse beside her, she then buries her head in my chest and starts to drift off, feeling my eyelids grow heavy I try to stay awake but it's no use, the last thing I hear before falling into sleep is Lilith's voice.

"I love you Gabriel."

**Author's Note:** I sincerely hope that this doesn't sound soppy or shit or anything, I'm not the best at writing sex, too impatient I think, but anyway I hope it was good enough, and it might be a shorter chapter but don't worry, just drop me a line and I'll take your concerns on board, and improve myself, for you guys.


	5. Chapter 4: Embracing The Darkness

**Author's Note:** Well here it is guys, the big reveal, hope you enjoy it. And stick around, cos things can only get better...Maybe...definitely...Probably **;)**

**Chapter 4: Embracing The Darkness**

I always hate waking up, especially when I've been having such amazing dreams, but today, today feels like it's gonna be a good day, if only for the girl lying next to me in bed, opening my eyes I look at her, and everything just falls into place, I can't believe my luck, I've got everything I ever wanted, and it's like I'm on cloud fucking nine. Checking the bedside clock I decide to get up, being careful as to not disturb Lil, then, creeping out of the bedroom I make my way over to the kitchen, now I'm not being cocky when I say that I can cook, and I don't just mean beans on fucking toast, even though I worked as a doorman I still picked some things up from the restaurant, so I get to work, and a half hour later I'm back in the bedroom with a tray of the best scrambled eggs you ever seen, along with a side of bacon and some juicy little tomatoes. I never did say I can cook fancy, just that I can cook.

The smell of the food, mixed with me calling her name, wakes Lilith up, she looks around, a bit confused, before her eyes focus on me, wearing very little, and then she sees the spread I've lain out for her, sitting up in bed the sheet falls from her shoulders and I look away, blood rushing to both my heads, she glances at me and notices that I'm not looking at her.

"Why so coy, you saw and did a lot more to me last night, remember?" She says, looking at me with those beautiful eyes of hers.

"Yeah I know, just that...that was last night, and I'm still wrapping my head around it is all." I reply, turning around and starting to get dressed, "You're not having anything?", Lil calls to me as I exit the room, "No, I need a new job, and I might as well get looking now, before my money runs out." I say, closing the apartment door behind me.

Things go well after that, after a few setbacks I manage to get a new job, working down at the docks, nothing fancy but pay's pay, over the next few weeks Lilith barely leaves my place apart from to go to work, so I make the suggestion that she move in with me and become my girlfriend, we go to pick up her stuff from her old apartment, the door's been repaired and Tom doesn't say anything when we show up, he looks bad, but I don't really care, as we're leaving I hear him mutter something under his breath, but once again, don't care, time skips by, a few months, then a year.

A few weeks before my 21st I come down with something, something bad, and I'm in the hospital for a week, when I get out, I feel like shit for a couple of days afterwards, but I pull through, and when I'm fully recovered, I visit a jewelers, and buy a ring, I figure there's no point in not living each day to its fullest, right? I plan to ask Lil to marry me on my 21st, but the chance never comes.

Waking up the day before my birthday I feel like death, my face is pale and I can't stop throwing up, weirdest thing is, as the day goes on, it gets darker and darker, until eventually it's like I'm puking tar, that freaks me the fuck out, soon though, I get off work and head home, when I'm in the elevator going up my head starts pounding, and my vision goes all blurry, rubbing my eyes it clears, a bit, all I want to do is just get in and go to sleep, all trace of the proposal gone from my mind, but reaching my door I notice something, the handle's busted, and the door's ajar, pushing it open I'm greeted by a familiar face, Tom, then things go black, drifting in and out of consciousness I hear snippets of a conversation.

"This guy's fuckin heavy."

"Yeah, no shit, what you a fuckin professor, get him in the van you limp dick..."

"Ugh, he's fuckin sweaty as well, looks like he's sick."

"Well don't grab him under the arms then you prick."

Then my head hits the floor and the Darkness envelopes me.

Opening my eyes the first thing I see is Lilith, her hands are tied and she's bleeding from a cut on her cheek. Trying to stand up I can't, glancing at my hands and feet I see thick rope tied around my limbs, but my head isn't bound, glancing round I try to make anything out, but everything is pitch black, the only source of light is the circular one hanging overhead, casting a large, yellowish circle on the ground, calling to Lil I try to wake her but she's out of it, her head sways gently and my chest grows tight, eventually though, I hear a door open, and three shapes enter, two taller than the third, they're talking and I recognize their voices, the goons who were at my apartment, but if they're here then that means...

"Well, well, you're awake." Tom says, stepping into the light.

"You!" I spit, staring at him with venom in my eyes, "What have you done you cunt!"

"Oh you mean her" he motions with his head at Lilith, who is starting raise her head a little, "I've just given her a little something, that's all, it should wear off soon though."

"What do you want?" I ask, sparing a glance at Lil.

"Oh I should think that's obvious, especially to you." he replies, and I feel myself grow a little more nervous under his eyes.

"You're going to kill me then?" I say, "And make her watch." I finish

"Well I was just going to have my associates do to you what you did to me but, you know what?, killing you would be even better." he says, standing in front of me and putting his face just inches from mine, big mistake, whipping my head back I slam into his face, hearing a CRACK and hoping that it's not me, it's not, he pulls away, blood streaming down his face, "Aww look at that," I say, shaking my head to clear it, "Not such a pretty boy now eh?" I finish, as he pulls back his fist and slams it into my face, it barely registers, and the look of pure anger on his face is hilarious, walking to his goons he barks some orders at them and they go to work, now their blows I can feel, they work me over pretty good, I manage to stay awake through my nose getting broken AGAIN, my lip getting busted open, even when one side of my face swells up and I can't see through the blood, I feel a couple of ribs snap and it becomes hard to breathe, the only time I make a noise though is when they take a baseball bat to my kneecaps, then I shout. _Then I _feel it, truly, and I shout, for what seems like ages before one of then brings the bat against my jaw, and that goes too, spitting blood and teeth out I can barely talk, but then, the worse happens, Lilith wakes up, and she sees me, and she screams, my god is that a sound I never want to relive, she keeps screaming until Tom shoves a rag into her mouth and tells her to shut up, then he admires his goon's handiwork, I'm a mess, and that ain't me being modest, I honestly, for the first time this night truly believe I'm going to die, and you know what, I don't care about me, what really pushes me over the edge though, is knowing that unless I do something, Lil's gonna die too, so though busted lips and a broken jaw I call Tom over.

"Tom," I whisper, any louder and my lungs would go, "Tom, come here."

Walking over to me, Tom keeps his distance for a second, remembering his nose, but then he deems me no longer a threat and so comes closer.

"Yes, what?" he says, and I can hear the revulsion in his voice, funny that, he sees dead and dying people on a daily basis, but me he can't even look at.

"Let her go" I ask, having to repeat myself a few times.

Why, why should I do what you want, she's just going to go to the cops if I do, no, I'm sorry, truly, but I can't let her go." he replies, standing up, "But if it's any consolation, it'll be quick." he finishes, turning around and walking away, just then, as my head drops, I catch a glimpse of my watch on the floor through my one good eye, it's flashing on 00:00pm, in a minute I'll be 21, and I'll be dead, I start to snicker, then chuckle, before finally bursting out in fits of laughter, my entire body jostling in a cacophony of pain, a symphony of agony, a harmony of pure terror as I uncontrollably shake, my hysteria replaced with dread as I realize that I'm losing consciousness, as I realize...

I'm dying.

But then, something happens, something deep inside me moves, I feel myself torn away from my mind, slammed behind some screen as something else takes hold of my body, Tom turned around with a puzzled look on his face when I was laughing, now that I've stopped he just stares at me, as I, looking through my eyes as if they were television screens, start to wonder what the fuck is going on here.

Then his face changes, his eyes widen with... Is that horror?, I can't be sure, because just then the light goes out, and in a single split-second, things get fucking scary, I see my arms, no wait... they're not my arms, what I thought were my arms are in fact two dirty, great, black tentacles, and they have _eyes, _Fucking eyes, one of them turns to me and opens it huge mouth, row upon row of sharp, jagged teeth stare me in the face, before a resounding voice booms in my mind.

_**"FINALLY, I AM REBORN!"**_

Then the other one, the left one, whips out and grabs one of the goons, wrapping itself around his body, before the first one grasps the guy's head and, with little to no effort, tears his head clean off his shoulders, throwing the head into the distance before the "Grabby" tentacle drops the body, blood still pumping through the ragged stump that remains.

_**"USELESS, PATHETIC MAGGOT!"**_

I feel myself lifted off the ground as the second goon comes into view, he's brandishing a torch, and he shines it around, finally landing the beam on the body of his friend, it stays there, shaking, as he shouts at the body, I'm behind him now, and just as he turns around that's when they strike, "Grabby" grasping his left leg and pulling it out from under him, suspending him in mid-air, while the other one, different in the fact that it has blades running up and down its head, grabs his right leg, before they both whip themselves in opposite directions and he comes apart down the middle, his entrails and organs spilling onto the ground in a steaming heap, his blood, pooling around the pile of guts, before the "Grabby" tentacle snakes into the pile and emerges with the guys heart in its mouth, turning to me it lets the heart slide further into its jaws before clamping them shut, blood leaks from the sides of its mouth as the voice returns, more forceful and aggressive.

_**"MY POWER IS UNLEASHED!"**_

"Wh...What's going on guys?, Guys?, Where the fuck are you pricks it's just a power outa..." and that's when the power comes back on, and Tom sees me, The look on his face, one of both shock and confusion, is matched only by the look on Lilith's face, except hers is more of terror, as she looks around at the Gory mess strewn about the floor I take this momentary opportunity to look at myself, I have to do a double take, my body is completely healed, feeling my face with my hands I'm in shock as I can't feel anything wrong with it, no broken nose, no busted lip, my jaw's even fixed.

_**"THE HOST WILL NOT DIE!"**_

Hearing the voice in my head, I finally realize that it's the same voice I've been hearing my whole life, the same and yet completely different, but I have no time to dwell on it now, now I have to deal with Tom, and as I advance towards him, passing through the light as I do so, he starts to cry, before falling on his ass and shuffling backwards, when I reach him, I have no false illusions about what I'm going to do to him, the images flashing through my mind are brutal, gory, downright sadistic, and yet as I lift him by the neck, or more accurately as the oozing black tentacles lift him by the neck into the air, I can't help but smile, and I feel good, I look good, hell I am good, he begs for his life, and then he pisses himself, I just walk into the dark, knowing that while Lilith's seen the dead bodies, I can't show her this.

_**"YES HOST, FEED ME HIS HEART!"**_

"Yeah, whatever you say." I reply after I've finished with Tom, his mangled body, what's left of it I leave hidden in the dark, before heading back to Lilith to untie her, when I reach her in the light I untie her, then when I remove the gag from her mouth she starts with the questions, I honestly don't know what to tell her, except that to go home and wait for me there, she says that the place is wrecked and I laugh, telling her that that's where I was ambushed so I know, then I offer her my hand and luckily, she accepts it, pulling her to her feet she tries to walk but stumbles and almost falls, I grab her and ask what's wrong, she explains that when they grabbed her from our place she must have twisted her ankle, so I scoop her up, off the ground, and carry her in my arms to the door, when we get outside it's raining and I recognize the area we're in, it's a warehouse by the docks I work at, no wonder the lights went out then, that place always goes schizo in the rain, the water must be hitting the fuse box. I know that it's more than a few blocks to our place, and with Lil in my arms I'm not sure I could do it, although I'll damn well try, just as I'm thinking about setting off though, a weird feeling comes over me and thick black smoke rises from my feet, enveloping us both before I feel like I'm being ripped in two and then suddenly we're in the apartment, and it's pitch black.

"What the hell was that?" I ask not sure what just happened, I put Lilith down and she limps over to the couch before sitting down, I get the feeling that she's just as wierded out by this as I am, maybe more though, but I still don't know what to tell her, so I sit next to her for a while before I have to get up and pace the apartment, picking up pieces of broken furniture and throwing them down again, not knowing what to do, I make for the door, examining the busted lock I stand back up.

"What am I going to do with this now?" I mutter under my breath, but just then the lock starts to reform, and not long after the door's completely fixed, I test it a few times to be sure before shutting it and feeling like I should say thanks, to whatever it is that helped me, so I do, for everything that night.

_**"YOU ARE A USEFULL VESSEL!"**_

"Yeah well, like I said, thanks, whatever your name is."

_**"I AM THE DARKNESS, WE MUST HAVE OUR REVENGE! WE MUST FIND HER!"**_

_"Revenge against who?"_ I think to myself as I start picking up bits of crap and putting them into a bin bag, after cleaning up the place and telling Lilith to go to bed I decide to get some air, heading out onto the street I head in a random direction, not feeling like I'm in control, after walking for what seems like hours I find myself at a cemetery, so naturally I head on in, following the feeling I take a few turns before coming to a grave, the name on it is unfamiliar to me, Jenny Romano, _"Wonder who she is?"_ I think, but just as I'm wondering who this woman is my thoughts are interrupted, I'm not alone, turning around I'm hit by an almightily powerful force and thrown backwards, into the statue of the woman's grave, as my spine impacts the stone base I hear the voice, this time though it sounds even more angry.

_**"FIGHT YOU FOOL, I WILL NOT LOSE, FIGHT!"**_

And as it says the words I can feel myself losing control again, the tentacles come back out, and this time, my hands and body are also encased in a thick carapace of black armor, as the tentacles lash out, I rise to my feet, feeling more powerful than earlier, before I'm blinded by a brilliant light and The Darkness shrinks back within me, regaining control I put my hand over me eyes and am immediately lifted into the air by hands on my throat, which then start to choke the life out of me, _"Who the fuck's strong enough to stop this Darkness guy and what the fuck is that light?" I _think, all the while trying in vain to wrestle the arms from around my throat, just as I'm about to fade I hear another voice in my head, this one though, belongs not to the Darkness but to Lilith, it's the memory of when she told me she loves me, and just thinking about that is enough to give me my second wind, so using a little trick from earlier I whip my head back before smashing it into the face of whoever has me, it works miraculously as I'm dropped and the light falters for a second, but that's all it needs. This time, when the Darkness returns I can feel more of myself in control, and it's about fucking time.

Only, I've never used this thing, this _"Darkness"_ before, and I'm a little non-plussed as to how get it to work properly, that proves to be my downfall, as the tentacles flail around under my fledgling control, unable to register any of my incoherent thoughts I'm once again slammed backwards by another powerful blow, this time though I get the wind knocked out of me as my back once again smashes against the stone, I slump to the ground as my legs go numb and blood pours from between my lips, looking up, into the bliinding light I know that unless I get rid of it then I AM going to die, so I do the only thing left to me, I ask a question.

"Who are you?" I ask, spitting blood from my mouth, hoping that whoever it is, that they'll take the bait.

Silence for a few seconds, before I get my reply.

"I found you just in time, the Darkness is not yet strong enough to withstand my light, but I am amazed that Jackie let it go, I thought he was stronger than that, I guess I overestimated him." the voice, a _woman's_ voice says, before the light dims but doesn't go out, still, it's enough for me to see the woman's face, Black hair, in a ponytail, hazel...no wait, green...no wait, her eye color keeps shifting, I can't pin it down, moving down I notice that her nose is still bleeding a bit.

"Sorry about that." I say, motioning to her nose, she just shakes her head and laughs it off, but it's a weird laugh, it scares the crap outta me.

"No need to apologize, it was nothing, although I did underestimate you, foolish of me, but I did not think you would have such fire within you, to retaliate." she says, and as she does her nose fixes itself. "I see you are accustomed to this then?" she asks, as she kneels down in front of me, the light seeming to follow her.

"You could say that, but one thing more before you do whatever the hell it is you're here to do." I say, feeling the Darkness regaining consciousness. "Who are you, and how the fuck can you stand up to me?" I finish, spitting more blood onto the ground.

"I, We, are the Angelus, I am the opposite to you, to the Darkness that festers within you, you are not the first of its hosts, and you will not be the last, but I cannot allow you to live with it inside you." she says, standing up and brushing the dirt from her legs, "It is a plague, a disease, and I am the cure." she finishes, looking at me with...is that sadness in her eyes?.

"Well, you know what they say?" I start as she stands in front of me and the light starts to get brighter.

"No, what do they say?" she asks.

"Opposites attract." I finish, before she lets out a sigh and the light flashes, the brightest I've ever seen, I stare into it, feeling myself fade away, looking down I catch glimpses of my body, it's burning but strangely I don't feel it, my flesh bubbles and blisters before darkening and cracking, my blood boils in my veins before it evaporates in the heat, soon my eyes melt in their sockets, and the world goes dark again, the last thing I hear before my ears go is the woman, the Angelus, saying one final word.

"Sorry."

**Author's Note:** Well, what do you think?, I said it was only going to be a few more chapters until we got to the big reveal and here it is, or was, I figure having the re-emergence of the Darkness AND the first clash between the Dark and the Light in this sucker, is good enough, it certainly came together quick enough, and boy oh boy is it the longest chapter I have written to date, sorry about having to change the rating to M but I didn't want to get in trouble.

**Side Note****- **Sorry if some of you guys feel like the Darkness is not Bitch/Angry enough. It was tough trying to convey the fact that he's happy to be free and in a new body that respects him, So he's giving us access to these new powers.


	6. Chapter 5: Not In Kansas Anymore

**Author's Note:** And now begins the decent into hell, to meet an old acquaintance, and get some answers, and if you can't guess then it means I'm bringing Jackie back, so stay tuned, Darklings.

**Chapter 5: Not In Kansas Anymore**

When I open my eyes I'm falling, falling into an abyss of pure darkness, so I do the only natural thing, I scream, and scream, right up until the ground rushes up to meet me and I slam so hard into it, I get the breath knocked out of me, making a hilarious squeaking noise as I do so, incredulously though, I'm not injured, after lying there for a while making sure that I can't feel any pain I slowly get up, as I'm standing I notice that the floor has a kitchen pattern on it, you know the type, the one with the black and white squares, kinda like a chessboard, I can't help but laugh as I imagine myself as a pawn, or a bishop with the funny hat, as I'm laughing though, I notice more and more things, number one is that there ain't no light here, but I can see clearly, number two is that this don't look like any place I ever been to and number three is that I can't hear the Darkness anymore.

"Yo, you out there?" I call to the shadows, praying for an answer, "If you're out there, let me know, I could use some help here."

There's no reply, and my stomachs in knots, remembering what happened in the cemetery I look down at my body, I guess the fact that I can see would have been clue number one that something's wrong here. Because a few minutes ago, I was toast, literally. Then I fall on my ass as I remember something else, I _DIED_. Covering my eyes with my hands I try to think of the apartment and hope that I'm going to wake up from this nightmare but I don't, now I'm getting a little scared, and what's more, I can hear things scurrying around out there. Just out of sight, just far enough away to make my imagination run wild.

"This isn't funny, what the fuck's going on here?" I shout, at nothing in particular, before getting to my feet again and starting to walk forwards, into the dark, into the cold, into Hell. Shapes flash in front of my eyes, blurs, incalculably fast, I keep walking and soon I reach a crossroads, literally, because instead of a signpost, there's a fucking cross planted in the ground. I try to go left but get thrown backwards. Then I hear the Darkness, its back, and it sounds pissed.

_**"YOU WILL NOT GO THIS WAY!"**_

"Well, why the fuck not?" I ask trying once again to get past the barrier, but only succeeding in getting thrown on my ass again.

_**"YOU HAVE FAILED ME, PUPPET, NOW YOU WILL SUFFER!"**_

"What do you mean "Failed you?" I didn't know some crazy woman was gonna attack us, and you could have given me a crash course on how to control those tentacle things." I say, once again standing up. Before noticing that the barrier is now a mirror, and my reflections standing there, beckoning me over, walking to the mirror I'm grabbed by the tentacles before being pulled into the mirror, it's solid unfortunately, and I get smashed against it more times than I'd like to mention, Before being thrown backwards once more.

_**"YOU WISH TO CONTROL ME!?"**___it says, and the reflection of me steps out from the cracked mirror.

"Well, I wouldn't mind being in control once in a while, what's the point of having the power if you can't use it?" I say, once again standing up and brushing myself off before walking over to stand once more in front of my reflection.

_**"I WILL NOT BE CONTROLLED!"**_

"I don't want to control you, just all the powers you can give me, I want those tentacles, and the weird armor and the teleport thing, I want it all**!**" I shout, feeling myself grow giddy with excitement.

Silence.

_**"VERY WELL, BUT YOU WILL DO MY BIDDING!"**_

"So I can have the powers then?" I ask, hoping that I haven't made a big mistake.

More Silence.

"Well, do we have a deal or what?" I ask one final time.

_**"YES, WE HAVE A DEAL, HOST!"**_

"Oh yeah, if we're going to be together for a while then you probably know my name, its Gabriel, not Host."

_**"I ALREADY KNOW YOUR NAME, GABRIEL, BUT YOU ARE MY HOST!"**_

"And I'm fine with that, just so long as you don't interfere with my life in too many ways." I say, sticking out my hand and waiting.

_**"FINE"**_ The Darkness says, before the reflection of me grasps my hand and we shake___**"BUT FOR EVERY LIFE YOU TAKE, YOUR SOUL WILL BECOME MORE CORRUPTED. AND THEN, YOU WILL BE MINE!"**_. It starts to get tighter and tighter, before pulling me close and stepping inside of me as if I were made of water, feeling the weirdly reassuring Darkness spreading through my limbs I can't help but smile, and at the same time wonder what the hell he means. Then, shaking it off I try to teleport out of this place, I can't, wondering how the hell I'm supposed to get out of here I start walking again, this time though I head right, and keep on walking.

I'm in a fucking maze, I'm sure of it, a maze of goddamn walls and doors, and every one of them has some weird shit behind it, it seems like every time I open one I'm sucked into some memory of mine. Only a perverted version, in some I'm naked, others I'm not even human but a mix of flesh and metal, in another I'm getting killed by various people, in very nasty ways, after doing this for a good while, whilst searching for the exit I give up and, exasperated, slump against a wall and cradle my head in my hands, wishing for the exit to appear, but it never does.

_**"TO FIND THE WAY, YOU MUST BE TRULY LOST!"**___The Darkness says, bringing with it the serpentine heads.

"But I AM lost, can't you see that?" I reply, shaking my head and getting to my feet, as I'm doing so I hear Lilith's voice, she's calling to me, from the darkness, hearing her voice I start to regain hope, before setting off into the shadows in search of her, hoping she can guide me home.

_**"BUT YOU ARE NOT YET LOST, GABRIEL!"**___Chimes the Darkness, _**"THERE STILL EXISTS A LIGHT WITHIN YOU!"**___It finishes, and out of nowhere a gun drops onto the floor, stopping me in my tracks. Picking it up I see that it's the same gun from all those years ago, sliding the magazine out I see that there is only one bullet in it, putting the magazine in my pocket I pull back the barrel to see if there are any bullets in that, there isn't, sliding the magazine back into the grip I pull back the barrel again to load the final bullet before carefully placing the gun through my belt and continuing onwards.

After hearing Lil's voice a few more times I finally emerge from the annoying maze, looking around I can see that I've come out on a ledge, overlooking a plain, a desert more like it, in the distance is a huge black castle, massive even from all the way over here, creeping to the edge of the ledge I'm stopped in my tracks by what I see below me. There are hundreds, thousands, maybe even millions of hideous, grotesque, misshapen creatures between me and my goal, milling around, not paying each other attention, just as I'm debating whether or not to go down I hear the Darkness again.

_**"YOU Will NOT DIE, YOU ARE MY VESSEL!"**_

"Good to hear that, you think we can handle all these things then?" I ask, feeling pretty unsure myself. The only response I get is the thick black armor seeping across my skin, and the Serpent-like heads emerging from the cloak of Darkness at my back.

"Alright then, it's go time." I say, taking a running leap off the ledge.

_"This might not have been such a good idea"_ I think to myself as the Darkness finishes gutting another of the creatures using a serpent head, it's blood, splashing across my face, luckily the Armor comes with a face piece as well. As one of the things rushes me, it's hand clenching a huge axe made of bone, I barely dodge the swinging weapon before it hits, then I concentrate and materialize a sword of Darkness, I've never used a sword before but somehow I'm a natural, with a flick of my wrist I send the creature's arm flying away, then I ram my jagged blade through its stomach before tearing it apart with the Serpent Heads, throwing it's half's at two other creatures.

Wanting to put some distance between me and the screaming horde of creatures I turn around and start to run, legs pounding on the dusty ground faster than my eyes can follow, within moments I'm a good few miles away, turning around and spying the castle getting ever closer I decide to have some target practice, making the sword disappear I conjure two massive handguns in the palms of my hands, they're the same as the sword, made of pure Darkness, _"I hope they have bullets"_ Is all I can think before raising them and pulling the triggers, it turns out that they do indeed have bullets, and boy are they awesome, as they fly through the air and embed themselves into multiple creatures before causing miniature explosions and leaving nothing but smoldering bits behind.

_"I'm pretty fucking awesome!"_ I think as another creature comes at me, swinging a piece of its friend, I dodge the swinging piece of meat and pull back my fist before letting it loose into the gut of the two headed creature, it flies backwards, weapon swinging, and hits some of its pals, then they're surrounding me, I feel myself go under the tide of flesh, being trodden on, being crushed beneath huge feet. Wishing I had wings I'm suddenly pulled upwards and out of the throng of bodies, looking up, it appears that there's not much I can't do. as there, above me, beating furiously, are the most awesome pair of inky black, purple veined, massive wings you've ever seen, the wingspan is huge!, like a double decker bus, only BIGGER!, I start to laugh as I pull off aerial maneuvers that would put the best fighter pilots to shame, before making for the castle, to find some answers, to find the way out, and, hopefully, to find Lilith.

**Author's Note:** Kind of a short chapter here but hopefully you guys will have gorged yourself on my fine wordage enough so as to let this one slide. This and the next chapter are part of a two-parter, so that means that Jackie boy's gonna show up real soon, I can't wait to see him again, how about you?


	7. Chapter 6: But Neither On Pandora

**Author's Note:** Trying a new thing, gonna have a quote from Jackie in the next few chapters, then maybe a few quotes about Darkness in general, but only ones that make sense.

**Chapter 6: But Neither On Pandora**

_"Right around the time he died my father said to me, he said, 'Jackie, you can't outrun your fate, but you sure as hell gotta try.' I didn't really know what he meant back then. You see, there was something inside of me, something terrible, waiting to get out. And when it did... It made me watch the only thing I ever cared about; get her brains blown out right in front of me. Then it gave me the power to make things right, the kind of stuff you only see in your worst nightmares. The killing only made it stronger, harder to control, eventually, I found a way to bury it. But ever since, it's been tryin to get back out. It calls itself, 'The Darkness'."_

Landing on a balcony I fold the wings behind me before walking through the archway, into a bedroom, its furnishings are surprisingly, human in origin, _"Weird"_ I think to myself as I approach the door, there's a problem, my wings are too large to fit through.

"Easily sorted." I say as the Darkness creeps back inside me, that fight with the creatures, the '_Demons'_ outside taught me a few things about how to control the various powers of the Darkness, I learnt that the '_Serpent-Heads'_ or _'Demon Arms'_ are not really bound to the Darkness, they're more of a free agent, maybe even sentient themselves, I even have names for them now, 'Grabby' and 'Slashy' I call them. Simple I know, but they seem to like them. I also learnt that I can conjure weapons made of pure Darkness, now that is some cool shit. Also on the table was the armor, now that's interesting, it seems to be able to adapt to different circumstances, the wings are already apparent, but I wonder what else I could add to it. I've no doubt that as I get more and more familiar with the Darkness and spend more time fighting, that I'll uncover most of the powers. _"Can't wait to see what else there is."_ I think as I exit the room.

_**"YOU HAVE A PLAN, I ASSUME"**_ The Darkness says as I stare down the hallway I'm now in.

"Yeah, head for the Centre, for the throne room, that's where the head honcho is I guess." I reply, starting to walk, I must have walked for hours, round and round this place, taking every passageway I could see, but nothing. I'm just about to punch the nearest wall in frustration when I hear something, or more accurately, _someone_, following the sound of their voice I find myself drawn to whoever it is, opening door after door I poke my head in, the voice getting louder and louder, until finally I'm standing before a big, black door, _"Guess we should knock, maybe."_ So I do, raising my fist I rap my knuckles on the door, the voice stops talking, I can't hear anything, no footsteps, no breathing, nothing, just as I'm having second thoughts about this I turn around to leave before the door creaks open, then I feel something against the back of my head, it's a gun. Not wanting to get my brains splattered on the floor I raise my hands and slowly tell the gunman that I mean them no harm and that I'm just looking for the way out.

The gun lowers a little, I guess that means he believes me, kinda bad on his part then as I, faster than any human eyes can see, whip around and 'Grabby' clamps his _Thankfully_ toothless jaw round the guy's throat. then he's in the air, being thrown backwards, shadows obscuring his face, as he crashes into the only piece of furniture in the room, a large leather bound chair, knocking it over as he does so. He's back on his feet in seconds though, and firing his gun at me, I just stand there and let the bullets hit me, before bounding over to him and tearing the gun from his grasp, before crushing it in my hands and throwing it on the floor. Then, I grab him by the throat again and this time instead of throwing him around I notice that there's a circle of light in the Centre of the room, just about where the chair was, so, the guy in my hand all the while I walk over to the light and hold him out into it.

He's got a really stylish suit on, coat's a little too large but it works, strangely. His hair's long, black and well kept, as I'm studying him I realize that I must be an even weirder sight for him, in my armor with the tentacles and the wings, but weirdly by the look on his face I'd say he's not even shocked to see me.

"Why do you look so calm?" I ask slowly letting my grip loosen a bit. "You'd think that if someone like me just came out of nowhere, you'd be a bit scared, maybe even piss yourself, but you, you look like you know me."

"Why the fuck are you back? you piece of shit" the guy says, before spitting in my face, nice. "Haven't you had enough, HAVEN'T YOU ALREADY GOTTEN WHAT YOU WANTED!?"

"listen buddy, I don't fucking know you, and judging by the way your acting I'd say you don't know me, so how about you shut the fuck up and tell me your name before I kill you eh?" I say, tightening my grip, raising him further into the air.

"Stop playing games you fuck! you already know my name, you've made my life a misery for years." he says, staring at me with such hatred in his eyes.

"No, seriously I don't know you, so." I start, letting him drop and losing the armor and everything, "How's about you tell me your name, then we'll go from there." I finish.

He looks at me, and for once his expression changes, his look of hate replaced with one of confusion, as he tries to recognize my face, when he fails he walks over to the chair and lifts it back onto its feet, before sitting down and, moving his hair out of his face, telling me his name.

"Jackie, Jackie Estacado, you?" he says, crossing his legs.

"Gabriel, Gabriel Sterne." I say, conjuring a chair and sitting down opposite him, before holding out my hand.

He shakes my hand and then asks me why I'm here, I tell him that I'm looking for the way out, and that I could use some help, then he asks me how I came to be here, so I tell him, about my life, about the shit that's happened, about everything, it's only when I get to my 21st not so long ago that his ears prick up, then he's truly interested in what I have to say, listening intently when I recount the experience in the warehouse, before finally stopping me when I get to the fight in the cemetery.

"Wait a minute, what?, say that again." he asks me, so I do, I tell him about walking to the cemetery, about finding myself standing in front of some woman's grave, about the ass-whooping I received and finally about getting burned to a crisp. As I'm describing the woman who killed me his eyes start to widen and when I tell him about her saying she was the Angelus he stands up, before grabbing me by my collar and asking... No, yelling at me is it true.

"Of course it's true, she said she was called the Angelus and that she knew about the Darkness, and then she killed me, and here I am." I say, backing out of his grasp.

"After that he tells me about himself, I listen for a while as he recounts his life, about all the stuff that happened to him, about the Darkness, about how it made him watch his girlfriend get killed in front of him, how it gave him the power to get revenge, about everything. Then he gets to a part about getting attacked at a restaurant and suddenly I remember him, interrupting him I say that I was there that night, as a doorman, I saw him go in, he sort of remembers seeing me but to be honest it doesn't matter. When he reaches the end of his tale, about killing himself with something called the 'Siphon', about going to hell, about losing the Darkling, at that point I have to ask what a Darkling is, apparently it's a physical manifestation of the Darkness host's subconscious, he tells me he used to have tons of them but managed to keep just one, weirdly he tells me it was British, kinda strange for a yank but what the hell right?.

"Well, looks like we're both stuck here then." I say, examining the room, there's nothing in it, nothing at all; in fact I'm not even sure that there are walls.

"Yeah, looks that way huh?" Jackie replies, and I just nod my head in agreement, "What about the things outside, the creatures?" I ask, "What are they?"

"I don't know, fuckin demons I think, Johnny'd know for sure though." Jackie says, closing his eyes and rubbing them with his hands.

"Johnny who?" I ask, "Johnny Powell, he's a Darkness expert." Jackie replies, "He's the one who helped me with the Darkness in the first place, He'd probably know how to get out of here." he finishes.

We're stuck there for a while, each trying to come up with ways out, each finding holes in the other's ideas, until I ask Jackie how he got out of hell before, he tells me that he had the Darkling to help him.

"Well, how do you get a Darkling then?" I ask, "I don't know, you should already have one, or two. If you've got the Darkness then it should have given you one." Jackie says. Concentrating I try to make a Darkling appear but don't know what they look like, so I ask the Darkness if it can help, but I get no reply.

"Hang about a sec," I start, getting up, "Why don't you just get yours back?" I ask Jackie.

"Because he died, getting me out of that fuckin asylum place." he says.

"Yeah, alright, he died...But when _you_ were the Host, now that it's me, I should be able to use your memories to bring him back." I finish.

"You really think that'll work?" he asks. "No... But it's our only hope isn't it?" I answer.

Standing up and asking me what to do I tell him that I don't know, maybe try taking my hand, he does so, then I tell him to concentrate on the Darkling, what it looked like, how it spoke, what it wore. I can't tell if he is but I soon get my answer as a small hole opens up in the floor and a small creature climbs out, wearing a union jack flag for a dress and with a dead cat on its head. Shaking its head it looks around before its eyes fall on Jackie, Jackie opens his eyes and meets the Darkling's gaze, and then it opens its mouth and talks.

"Monkey, what are you doing here? And why am I alive again?" the Darkling says, patting itself down, before its eyes fall on me, "And who the hell's this?" it asks, crawling over to me and sniffing me. "Oh... Right then, guess you're the new host eh?" it asks me and I nod.

"Congratulations Monkey, you're free." He says, turning back to Jackie, who's sitting down again, "Yeah, I don't have the Darkness anymore, but I'm still trapped down here, and Jenny's the Angelus now." Jackie finishes.

"Oh, sorry to hear that Monkey." the Darkling says, also sitting down, before asking me why I'm here. After I've explained everything, he tells me that I can't get out because I don't have a body anymore, back in the real world, I ask him how do we get out then, and he replies that the only way to get out of hell, is to make a deal with the Devil, so to speak.

"Well, where's the Devil then? I'll make him let us out, both of us." I ask.

"He's inside you mate." The Darkling replies, pointing at my chest, not knowing what he's talking about I go to ask him but before I can I get what he means... Asking him to clarify he tells me that the Darkness created, or at least helped to create hell.

"So, in order to get out, I have to make a deal with the Darkness?" I say, not sure of what I could offer him.

"No not you, you can come and go as you please, but if you want to get Jackie boy out here, then you have to give the Darkness something it wants even more than him." the Darkling replies.

"Yeah, but he don't want nothin more than me does he?" Jackie says.

Just as I'm wondering what we can get to bargain with him the Darkness makes a re-appearance in my head.

_**"THE SIPHON, FOR HIS SOUL!**_

**"**What's the 'Siphon', I ask out loud.

"THE SIPHON, OF COURSE!" Jackie shouts, as he tears out of the room, getting up I follow him, the Darkling not close behind me.

"Wait", I call after him, "Where are you off to?"

He doesn't answer, worried I'm going to lose him I start running, soon though we're outside, the sky hasn't changed, it's still dark out, I see Jackie running out the front gate and head out after him, catching up to him I spin him around and demand he tell me what the Siphon is, he tells me that it's the only thing that can cage the Darkness, I ask him why the Darkness would want to be caged, he replies that it wouldn't but it wants the Siphon because it can complete the Darkness, make it stronger than anything, that sounds really awesome, so I ask him where it is.

He doesn't know but the Darkling pipes up, telling us that he can sense it, so, Jackie in front, he starts to lead us across the plain. Hopefully, giving the Darkness the Siphon won't be a stupid thing to do. Hopefully, we can all get out of this alive.

**Author's Note:** My god this chapter sucked balls, I hate conversation, so much to explain and so many little things to write about, hopefully this didn't come across as rushed or pulled out my ass, believe me it wasn't-Took me 3 days to write this one, never again though, man do I _hate_ writing dialogue.


End file.
